Ho Chi Minh City: Intensifying strategies for "final push" to meet budget revenue goals

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HCMC's trade turnover reflects a downturn from the previous year. Photo: T.H.

All three main revenue streams have decreased

According to a report from the HCMC People's Committee on October 30th, the total state budget revenue for the first 10 months of 2023 decreased by 8.1% compared to the same period last year. All three components within the total budget revenue experienced a decline year-on-year: domestic revenue decreased by 5.2%, crude oil revenue fell by 16.4%, and import-export revenue dropped by 13.1%.

For a detailed breakdown:

• Domestic revenue reached approximately 250,967 billion VND, achieving 81.6% of the estimate, constituting 67.3% of the total balanced revenue and seeing a 5.2% decrease year-on-year. State-owned enterprise revenue was about 25,084 billion VND, achieving 80.6% of the forecast, making up 6.7% of the total and dropping 9.6%.
• Non-state sector revenue amounted to roughly 75,782 billion VND, hitting 87.0% of the estimate, accounting for 20.3% of the total and growing 3.2%.
• Foreign-invested sector revenue was around 62,944 billion VND, reaching 87.0% of the forecast, making up 16.9% of the total, and declining 2.3%.
• Crude oil revenue was approximately 20,206 billion VND, surpassing the estimate by 26.3%, making up 5.4% of the total balanced revenue, and decreasing by 16.4%.
• Import-export activities brought in about 101,529 billion VND, reaching 69.6% of the estimate, constituting 27.2% of the total balanced revenue, and falling 13.1%.
• The balanced local budget revenue for the first 10 months of 2023 was around 98,683 billion VND, reaching 96.7% of the estimate, accounting for 30.4% of the total balanced state budget revenue and increasing by 14.7% year-on-year.

Contrastingly, a bright spot for HCMC this year has been its budget spending, which has shown positive results. Estimated local budget expenditures rose 37.3% compared to the same period last year. Of this, capital expenditure increased 31.7% and recurrent expenditure grew 9.4%. The total local budget expenditure (excluding advances) for the first 10 months of 2023 was around 63,894 billion VND, achieving 50.6% of the forecast and increasing by 37.3% year-on-year.

Overall, balanced local budget expenditure (excluding advances) was approximately 51,921 billion VND, hitting 46.9% of the estimate and growing 15.1% compared to the same period last year. Specifically:

• Local budget development investment was around 14,402 billion VND, achieving 31.3% of the estimate and increasing by 31.7% year-on-year.
• Regular expenditure was approximately 36,748 billion VND, hitting 61.1% of the estimate and rising 9.4%. Spending for education and training was about 13,536 billion VND, reaching 64.4% of the estimate and growing 25.3%.
• Health sector spending was around 2,303 billion VND, achieving 36.6% of the estimate and decreasing 29.4%.
• Science and technology spending amounted to 492 billion VND, reaching 51.2% of the estimate and falling 22.0% year-on-year.

"Last-ditch" efforts to achieve the targets

Based on the HCMC People's Committee's analysis, the city's economy continues to see positive shifts. In October and throughout the 10 months of 2023, several growth indicators were promising. For instance, the total retail sales of goods and consumer service revenue in October was estimated at 108,120 billion VND, a 2.6% increase from the previous month and a 15% rise year-on-year. For the 10 months of 2023, it was approximately 978,681 billion VND, growing 9.2% year-on-year. Tourism revenue in October was about 14,585 billion VND, up 10.5%. Domestic tourist numbers were around 3.51 million, a 7.4% increase. International tourists numbered about 554,536, a 1.5% increase compared to October 2022. Cumulatively for the 10 months of 2023, total revenue was roughly 140,048 billion VND, a 32.6% increase year-on-year and 16.7% above the 2023 plan. The Industrial Production Index (IIP) for October is estimated to have increased by 2.4% from the previous month and 10.6% year-on-year. Overall, for the 10 months of 2023, the IIP in HCMC grew by 3.7% compared to the same period last year. For the city's four key industries, the industrial production index over the 10 months increased 6.3% year-on-year.

Despite these positive aspects, HCMC has identified existing limitations, such as a decline in the value of import-export goods, a decrease in the capital of newly established enterprises, and a nearly 30% increase in the number of businesses ceasing operations. In response, the city has delineated 10 pivotal strategies to be rolled out in the year's final months. This encompasses continued adherence to directives from both the Central Government and the City Party Committee, as well as the completion of tasks listed in the city's 2023 work program. Of significant note is the forthcoming implementation of Resolution No. 98/2023/QH15.

Specifically, HCMC is making efforts to achieve its public investment disbursement rate and state budget revenue targets, and contribute to achieving the city's economic and social development targets. With this in mind, they are focusing decisively on trying to achieve the highest possible state budget revenue for 2023.